It’s Friday night in San Francisco and this year’s GDC is slowly drawing to a close. Feet are sore, voices have vanished, beards have grown and our stack of business cards has shrunk quite a bit. But it was totally worth it.

We can’t cover every exciting thing that has happened, but here are some of the highlights of the week.

Every GDC 101 tells you not to spend too much time with the many talks (as attendees can later watch them in theGDC Vault). Still, it’s hard to pass up the opportunity to see some legendary game designers like Sid Meier, Warren Spector and Hidemaro Fujibayashi live on stage.

Hearing about games is one thing, going hands on with them can be even more fun. Next to Crazy Monkey Studios’ Guns, Gore & Cannoli 2 that was playable at the Xbox booth, there were a great number of awesome games to play on the show floor. Thanks to Day of the Devs, IndieMegaBooth, Unity, PlayStation and IGF Pavillion for the top notch selection.

We’d like to specifically point out the European Game Showcase at CBS Interactive. Unfortunately, there were no Belgian games present this year, so let’s try and smuggle some in next year!

Networking parties are a vital part of the GDC experience and we were treated to some great ones this year. There was the Belgian Games Mixer hosted by AWEX and FIT, PocketGamer Party, Epic Games Party, and many more. If it looks like we did nothing but party: wrong. But you can’t work hard without playing hard.

The biggest celebration of all came in the form of the IGF and GDC Awards. Over the course of two hours the best games of last year got celebrated and it all felt like one big party.

So there you have it. The very first Mission San Francisco is almost over and it was such a thrill that we hardly can’t wait to do it all over again. See you next year!

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Event calender

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DEADLINE - alt.ctrl.GDC 2…

DEADLINE - alt.ctrl.GDC 2018 Showcase01/12/2017

Thanks for being interested in our alternative controller/game showcase! You can enter here for free to be considered for our 2018 alt.ctrl.GDC showcase. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdZSIvuSXTHnxAgtbKy_URjuJXQtO9L8madA4fv4ZrQVmEZLg/viewform

WALGA is happy to welcome you to a special edition of Walga café! Thanks to ADN, and Digital Wallonia, the event is totally free of charge, there will be some light catering and some drinks. They also have a big projector and a TV where you can showcase your games so don't hesitate to bring them. Please let them know on slack in channel #walgacafe if you plan on showing your games. Register here if you want to visit https://www.eventbrite.com/e/walga-cafe-tickets-39247712966

The SXSW Gaming Awards celebrates the wide reach of gaming across areas such as art, design, narrative, gameplay, cultural innovation, esports, VR, and more. Enter in any or all of the 20 Gaming Awards categories that celebrate and recognize the best within the gaming world. https://cart.sxsw.com/products/gaming_app ($50)

Business Angels Network Vlaanderen and Startups.be invite you to a practical information session on how to prepare and implement your fundraising: Start up your fundraising! Now! https://startups.be/events/investor-readiness-training-by-ban-vlaanderen-startupsbe-in-december-start-up-your-fundraising-now/2482

The next VR meetup will take place within STEREOPSIA. Praised worldwide for its quality & conviviality, Stereopsia is about the magic, enchantment, & power of IMMERSION. For the 9th consecutive year, the event brings to its international participants pertinent, hot, and emerging information about the science, technology, art, contents, applications, and business of IMMERSION, including for 3D, VR, AR, and XR. https://www.meetup.com/nl-NL/Virtual-Reality-in-Belgium/events/244928919/?eventId=244928919

FLEGA and Flanders DC invite you to our second #GamingExpertDay boasting group info sessions and 1to1 f2f meetings with experts in different domains such as marketing, social media, IP, copyright, business development, subsidies and grants... Round off the day at our world famous #FLEGACafe. More information and registration to follow.

Visit Next Apps in Lokeren, the app company that successfully launched the colorful puzzle game Colorcube on AppStore. https://www.eventbrite.be/e/op-bezoek-bij-next-apps-tickets-39686464283 (link in Dutch)

This is a monthly meetup for anyone interested in videogames as a medium to express stories, emotions, audio-visual art or just plain old entertainment and fun. https://www.facebook.com/events/496489564083625/

The IMGA is now the mobile entertainment industry's leading showcase for groundbreaking
innovations, displaying exceptional quality and new trends in mobile entertainment, whether
the games are made for the iPhone, for Android Phones or other platforms. http://www.imgawards.com/mobile-gaming/global/

This contest will recognize the best indie talent from several European countries and offer prizes that will help you get developers’ game noticed by industry experts and gamers worldwide.

Prizes for finalists and winners include:
A paid trip to London to showcase their game at the final event at the Saatchi Gallery
Paid digital media campaigns worth up to 100,000 EUR
YouTube influencer campaigns worth up to 50,000 EUR
Premium placements in Google Play Store
Promotions on Android and Google Play marketing channels
Tickets to Google I/O 2018 & other top industry events
The latest Google hardware
Special prizes for the best Unity games
And more